Tufting mechanism.



W. E. BUSER.

TUFTING MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 25. 1913- 1,21 5,61 8. Patented Feb. 13, 1917.

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W. E. BUSER. TUFTING MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 26, 1913.

Patented Feb. 13, 1917.

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VILLIAM E. BUSER, OF CHILLIGOTHE, OHIO.

TUFTING MECHANISM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 13, 1917.

Application filed. March 26, 1913. Serial No. 756,897.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, l/VILLIAM E. BUSER, a citizen of the United States of America, and residing at Chillicothe, in the county of Ross and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in T ufting Mechanisms, of which the following is a specification. v

This invention relates to improvements in tufting mechanisms and has particular relation to the fasteners utilized in the making of a tufted pad and the supports for such fasteners.

As far as I know, the invention is a dis tinct departure from all devices known in the prior art, in that the fasteners and their supports are so formed complementally that the fasteners are maintained in operative position by a bracing action in contradistinction to a clamping action. All prior devices have sought to maintain operative position of the fasteners (this generally being with the prongs upright) by clamping the bases of such fasteners. There are numerous drawbacks to this, these drawbacks being such as to render this type of machine more or less defective, even for the work to which it is now being generally applied. It may be explained that the work to which it is generally applied at the present day is the making of tufted pads whose biscuits are approximately three inches in diameter and over.

There is a large class of work, however, in which the biscuits of the pad must be considerably smaller with a consequent material increase in the number of tufts to a given area. An example of this class of work is linings for caskets and limousines. The fasteners and the clamping support in known use have been found to be entirely unfit for the manufacture of this class of tufted pads. There are numerous reasons for this which will be set forth more fully as this description progresses. Let it suflice to note at this point that, at the present day, these linings for caskets and limousines are being made by hand, although the machines for making the larger tufted pads have been in use throughout the country for a number of years.

I have found that the difficulties and drawbacks center about this clamping action of the supports and the resultant defects of structure, and it will be made apparent hereinafter that these difficulties, drawbacks and defects are very real and material. My lnvention is primarily based upon the elimination of this clamping action and the sub-- stitution, therefor, of a bracing action. This bracing action may be effected in several ways, but in any event it will probably be preferable to extend certain walls of the supports into bracing relation to the prongs of the fasteners. The prongs may surround the walls of the support, as by extending a central peg vertically therebetween; or the walls of the support may-surround prongs, as by mounting the fasteners insockets. In either event, it would appearthat these walls must contact with the prongs sufliciently to have a bracing action thereon.

In the form of the invention to be shown in the drawings of this application it will appear that I have used the latter mode of attaining the desired results, for my fasteners are U-shaped staples preferably made of wire round in cross section and are supported in U-shaped slots. The advantages which accrue will be striking to those who are versed in requirements of the art. Chief among these is the possibility of producing a sightly pad that may be readily tacked to a surface. This is due to the form of the fastener, as is the much-to-be-desired production of spaced round holes instead of rectangular or jagged openings.

I have found it advisable to provide some means of holding the fasteners against accidental withdrawal during the placing of the facing on the mold board and over such fasteners and during the plaiting of the facing. The form of my support is such that it lends itself readily to a frictional contact between the walls of the supports and fasteners and I have taken advantage of this. In the use of U-shaped staples, I have happily solved the problem by providing the staples with their legs initially divergent and resilient so that they must be compressed to fit the staples into their slots. After insertion, they retain themselves in this position by their own resilience. However, when the staples are clenched, just before the pressure is removed from the pad, this resilience is practically destroyed, so that the pad is unrestrained by the supports in upward movement. This freedom from restraint against removal of the pad is the main incentive for eliminating the clamps.

Other features will appear as the description progresses, and to clearly present the invention, reference will be had to the accompanying drawings in which similar characters of reference designate corresponding parts and in which,

Figure 1 is a perspective view with parts of the mechanism shown in separated relation.

Fig. 2- is a vertical transverse sectional view, showing the tufted fabric produced and the manner of using a hand clenching device to clench the tuft fasteners.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail in section showing the manner in which the fasteners are generally protected during the filling in of the con'ipressible material.

Fig. l is a detached perspective view of a section of the tufted pad.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the fastener support and the fastener prior to the placing of the fastener in the slot of the support, and showing the divergent position of the legs of the fastener.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the fastener and the essential parts of the support shown separated, it being understood that there are other ways of making this support.

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of a clenching device for clenching the fasteners.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of a fastener protector.

Fig. 9 is a section taken through one of the depressions of the completed pad.

Referring to the drawing specifically, 1 designates a mold board which may vary as to size and shape. In practical operation, when the mold board is being used for making tufted fabric for casket linings, it will preferably be of a size to make at one operation an article which will form the bottom, sides and top of the casket in a manner which will be more fully explained here inafter. A follower board 2 is shown and will. of course, vary as to size and shape to conform to the mold board.

The present improvement is based upon the relative form of the fasteners and the supports therefor, the essential feature being the provision of a support which main tains the fastener in an upright position by a bracing action rather than by clamping. (hie manner of attaining this desired result is shown in the accompanying drawings in which a plurality of fastener supports 3 are shown secured to the bottom 4 of the mold board. In the form shown, each support comprises a cylindrical body 5 having a screw 6 projecting from its base whereby the supports may be secured to the mold board at selected points. The top of each cylindrical body is provided with a slot 7 which extends downward into the upper end of such body for a suitable distance as shown in Fig. 3, to receive and support a U-shaped fastener 8. Preferably, this fastener is formed from wire, round in cross section and having its legs slightly divergent and pointed. These legs may be of the same length, as shown in Fig. 6, or one leg may be shorter than the other, as shown in Fig. 5.

The support 3 may be made in several ways and it need not necessarily have a, cylindrical body. Onemanner of making the slot 7 in the body is illustrated in Fig. (3. in which there is illustrated a longitudinal slotfor the reception of a plate 11 with an opening 12 of U-form, this plate 11 being fitted and secured in the slot with the opening 12 uppermost.

The supports 3 upon the mold board that the slots in the ad jacent sup 'iorts will not; aline but will extend at various angles in relation. to each other. This is pzu'ticularly advantageous in the making of pads of woven material. It will be readily understood that the nature of this material renders it especially liable to splitting. I have found that this danger is greatly reduced by causing the slots to extend in different direction, which of course results in preventing alinement of the staples. t

In Fig. 7, I show one form of handclenching device 13 which has its clenching end tapered as at 14, these tapered portions being provided with tapered recesses or slots 15, forming a spreading and clenching surface which is essentially wedge-shaped with tapered or wedge-shaped recesses 15. In operation, the wedge end of the clenching device is placed between the legs or prongs of a fastener 8, the prongs entering the wedge-shaped recesses and, as the clenching device is forced downwardly, the legs or prongs of the fastener are forced outwardly against the backing of the pad.

A suitable combined fastener and plaiter is used during the filling in of the stuffing of the pad for each support and fastener, this device being designated 16 and shown in detail in Fig. 8, where it will appear that it is possessed of plaiter slots 17. This device is an improvement upon the device shown in my Patent Number 850,816 of April 16th, 1907.

In operation of my preferred form, assuming that the supports are properly located, the legs of the staples are slightly compressed and such staples are placed in the slots 7 with their legs upstanding. The sheet of material which is to form the face of the pad, being previously marked, is then placed over the mold board and the staples forced therethrough at the marked points by hand. The marking is such that a fullness is left between the supports so that the material may be plaited in a well-known manner. The combined fastener protectors and plaiters 16 are then placed in the position shown in F ig. 3, there being one for each support and fastener. A suitable are so placed in position- 

